Improvement in brick-machines



2 sheets sheet 1.

n. w. GL'ENDINNING.

Brick-Machines. N0. 143,569, 7 I Patented Oct. l4,18.73.

\M m u x.

U ITE STATES FICE.

DAVID W. GLENDINNING, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

IMPROVEMENT IN BRICK-MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters PatentNo. 143,569, dated October 14, 1872; application filed January 21, 1873.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, DAVID W."GLEND1N- NING, of Detroit, in the county of Wayne and State of Michigan, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Brick-Machines; and I do declare that the following is a true and accurate description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings and to the letters of reference marked thereon, and being a part of this specification, in which Figure 1, Sheet 1, is a perspective view of my machine, with the front end of the frame, which is supported by the fore wheels, broken away, and portions of the mud-hopper and sand-box broken out. Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the mold-drum, showing in part the mechanism by means of which the molds are operated and the cam, which operates said mechanism. Fig. 3 is a plan of one of the heads of said drum from the inside. Fig. 4 is a vertical longitudinal section through the center of the mold-drum. Fig. 5 is a detached perspective view of a mold and its movable bottom, as seen when thrown out of the molddrum to deliver the bricks upon the ground. Fig. 6 is an inverted perspective view of the said mold. Fig. 7, Sheet 2, is a bottom plan of Fig. 1; and Fig. 8 is a longitudinal vertical section of the machine on the line was in Fig. 7.

Like letters refer to like parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to a machine for the manufacture of bricks, mounted on a carriage, and so arranged that it will mold bricks from the mud contained in its hopper and deposit them on the ground as it is drawn along the yard; and it consists, first, in the novel and peculiar construction of a revolving molddrum mounted onthe rear axle of a carriage, said axle and drum being rotated at will by the traction-wheels of the carriage, and, in connection with a press-drum which is geared tosaid mold-drum, the bricks are formed and pressed in the drum-molds from mud fed to them from a hopper above, and finally discharged on the yard; second, in the mechanism for operating the molds; third, in the devices for wetting and sanding the molds prior to filling them fourth, in a strike for leveling off the clay in the molds, while it also removes any clay adhering to the press-drum;

supports the working parts of the machine,

and is in turn supported by two axles, the'rear one, D, only being shown, on which revolvethe traction-wheels O. The rear axle is journaled in boxes in the frame, and at each end is a clutch-box, E, and by it the axle may be compelled to rotate with the wheels when desired. These clutches are worked by a lever, G, by being connected therewith by the levers F, and they should, under all circumstances, be so arranged as to work simultaneously, and the clutch-boxes should be so geared that if the machine be movedbackward they will be thrown out of gear and allow the wheels to revolve freely, without turning the axle on whichthey are mounted. Inside the frame A the heads H H of the press-drum are rigidly secured to the axle, the right-hand head being provided with a crown-gear, a, at its periphery, which meshes with and drives the pinion b of a counter-shaft, I, journaled in hangers under the side of the frame. A spur-wheel, K, is also secured to the axle outside the left-hand head H, and meshes with a similar wheel, L, on the axle of the press-drum M, Which is also journaled in the frame A in front of the mold-drum. On the inner face of each head H is formed a polygon or series of ledges, d, at a certain distance from the periphery, these ledges being of sufficient width to receive a sectional 1nold,N, and bottom, 0, so that when said molds and loottoms are seated on the ledges the molds will not project beyond the peripheries of the heads. 7 The outer face of the mold-bottom O has secured to it a number of followers, 6, which may enter the compartments of the mold to force out the bricks. The molds have secured to one end a curved spring, k, and to the other a guide, It, both of which pass through the ledges d to the outside of the drum-heads H. The inner ends of the springs 7c terminate in hooksm, so arranged that in the rotation of the counter-shaft I a cam, J, on said shaft, at each revolution, will press inwardly the hook of each mold-spring as it sweeps by, thereby withdrawing a latch, 72, on said spring from a ring, 0, on the head H, which will thus allow the mold to drop, the unlocking of the moldspring being done just as it approaches a perpendicular line let fall from the axle, the bottom following it down. Near each end of the mold-bottom there is pivoted a bell-crank latch, p, Fig. 5, its upper arm having a latchnotch, phformed in its inner face, while the other end of the bell-crank has a stud, 12 turned down and passing through the bottom to impinge on the partition-rib of the mold below. The latch-arm passes through an opening in the ledge 61; and when the mold and bottom drop, as the former rises the latch engages with said ledge and arrests the bottom until the mold has been raised far enough to have its partition-ribs strike the studs 10 which nuthdraws the latches p from the ledges, when the mold and bottom move up together to their seats.

The mechanism for operating the molds consists of a lever, P, for each mold, inside the mold drum. These levers are connected at each end to a bell-crank, R, pivoted between a pair of lugs or ears, S, inside each drumhead, in such a manner that one arm of each bell-crank passes through the drum-heads and through a slot in the spring 70 or the guide h, as the case may be, so that when the cam J unlatches the notch 12 in the spring is from the ring 0 both ends of the mold will move down or up in unison. After the molds have dumped their bricks on the yard the continued rotation of the cam brings it inider the hook m, which it raises, drawing up the mold again until it is latched in place. As the molds and their attachments are necessarily heavy, to ease the labor of the cam and hook in lifting them, as well as of the latches which hold them in place to the girt of a yoke, T, pendent from the main frame, I secure the ends of two metal bars, U, whose other ends are carried back under the axle and bent so as to come imder the ends of the molds. Each bar is suspended from the frame A by a spiral spring,V, of such tension that nearly the entire weight of the molds and their attachments will be supported by the said springs when said molds are at or near the ground. W W are two arms sleeved at one end on the shaft of the press-drum, one at each side thereof, and are connected near their rear ends by a transverse rod, t, to the ends of which are secured the spiral springs V, pendent from the main frame, to draw them upward. Between the rear ends of the arms T are pivoted the rear corners of a metallic plate or strike, X, whose other ends or corners are adjustably secured to a quadrant on the arms T. The rear edge of the strike removes any superfluous clay from the faces of the molds as they pass by, the strike being held in contact there with by the springs V. The other edge of the strike serves as a scraper to remove any clay adhering to the press-drrnn, whose face carries a series of press-blocks, which come opposite the molds and compress the mud therein, the spaces between the press-blocks serving as cushions to receive small stones, in case they come opposite the edges of the molds, as the two drums come together on the plane of their axes. The press-drum is journaled in boxes '12, which slide in their fastenings under the frame, being constantly pressed toward the mold-drrmi by the springs y behind the boxes 1), so that in case stones or other hard material should get into the molds, and of such size as to interfere with the rotation of the mold-drum, the press-drum will recede until the obstructed mold has passed down, when the press-drum will instantly resume its proper position. The rear part of the main hopper is partitioned off to form a sand-box, A in the opening in the bottom of which is journaled a sand-valve, 1', having a series of corrugations on one side. By turning this valve 1" the flow of the sand into the molds as they pass under it is readily adjusted. Behind the hopper is suspended a water-tank, A to contain water. From this tank a pipe with a regulating-cock leads to a sprinkler, w, consisting of a finely-perforated cylinder, lying under the tank, the object of which is to wet the molds, so that the sand will adhere to them.

The clay from which the bricks are to be made is first prepared in the usual pug-mills, and then filled into the hopper A The clutches are then thrown into gear and the machine drawn along the yard, causing the drums to revolve, forcing the clay into the molds, which successively discharge the molded bricks upon the yard, ready to hake up for drying, preparatory to burning.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a machine of substantially the described construction, the mold-drum having the sectional molds N, bottom 0, followers 0,

guides h, springs k, hooks m, latch n, ring 0,

bell-crank latches p, levers P, and bell-cranks R, combined and arranged as described.

2. The combination of the cam J, operated as described, with the peculiarly-formed spring 70 and the latch p, as described.

3. The combination of the water-tank, pipe, and sprinkler with the mold drum, as described.

4. The combination of the water-tank, having its pipe and sprinkler, and the sand-box, having its valve, with the mold drum, the parts being arranged as described, for the purpose set forth.

5. The combination of the strike X with the I mold-drum and press-drum, the same being so arranged as to smooth the brick in one and scrape the adhering earth from the other, as described.

.6. The combination of a mold-drum with a press-drum the latter being made adjustable, substantially as and for the purpose described.

DAVID W. GLENDINNING.

Witnesses:

H. S. SPRAGUE, II. F. EBER'IS. 

